SBA pumping up free entrepreneurial training course

The Small Business Administration’s New York office is looking for local small business owners to enroll in its Emerging Leaders entrepreneurial training course.

The free seven month long program seeks to help small businesses expand, create jobs, and innovate. Two separate sessions are being offered, one in Yonkers, and one in Manhattan.

Founded in 2008, Emerging Leaders has trained 5,000 small businesses, leading to the creation of more than 6,500 jobs. The program has helped businesses collectively secure more than $3.16 billion in government contracts and helped them generate more than $300 million in new financing, according to a written statement from the SBA.

Eligible businesses must have an annual revenue ranging between $400,000 and $10 million, be in business for at least three years, have at least one employee aside from the business owner, and the applicant must be a key decision maker in the firm.

The program allots for roughly 100 hours of class time and training on topics including entrepreneurship education and executive training.

“I know I would have benefited from this program when I was running my own company,” Beth Goldberg, the Director of the New York District SBA Office, said. “Where else can you talk openly and honestly with other small business owners about what’s really going on in your company?”

Goldberg also said participants will leave the classes with a three-year growth program that is “personally tailored for his/her business.”

“The SBA calls it a ‘mini-MBA because the lessons business owners learn are invaluable,” she said.

While neither program is being offered on Long Island, the SBA says that some of its most successful graduate businesses have come from Long Island.